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Direct Advertising — Going From Idea to RealityWhat’s the secret to having agencies knocking on your door?

Sean Kilcullen

Product Manager

Whether you’re a veteran in the publishing space or starting your first gig, there’s no doubt the world of advertising is both exciting and fast paced.

Even for the experienced and proactive ad tech expert, the often-changing (sometimes weekly) tactics, terms, and best practices can feel like a whirlwind of information.

What was effective last month may not be effective today. Your objectives last quarter may change after your lunch meeting. Your “sure thing” creative idea may be greeted with disinterested shrugs.

And it doesn’t end there.

Kicking off a campaign is complex, time consuming, and has many moving parts.

For a brand to bring its idea into reality, it must first communicate the idea to the agency. Then the agency and brand work together to define and collect the proper campaign requirements.

Next, the agency will RFP publishers while creating a media plan for their brand. Agencies then share their desired requirements with suitable publishers and report back to the brand.

The process involves many back-and-forth communications, presentations, and last minute tweaks — not to mention the inevitable disagreement or two.

Each step presents its own challenges, but the end result can be sweet.

While the ad sales RFP process can be time consuming for all parties involved, as a publisher, you must do everything you can to make it easy for the agency to say yes. So instead of spending hours debating the font of your latest pitch deck or logo, focus on what will make agencies give you a call.

The publishing space is one of the most competitive industries in the world. But when you have the right strategy and foundation, there’s plenty of room for you and your brand to succeed.

Several up-and-coming publishers are making a real splash — check out these case studies from FloSports and BuzzFeed for a couple of examples. There’s plenty of room left for you to make your mark.

While your competitors are chasing the next best thing, you can build strategic relationships and partnerships with agencies that help speed up the growth of your mission and your brand.

So what’s the secret? How can you have agencies knocking on your door?

It all starts by creating the perfect ad sales RFP.

Having worked with hundreds of publishers, brands, and agencies, we know what it takes to create an ad sales RFP that converts.

Whether you’ve written RFPs before or are hearing about them for the first time, you won’t want to miss our guide.